Secretary of State Rex Tillerson sought to fend off inside-the-Beltway rumors and reports that he was ready to leave the State Department earlier this year. In a brief press conference Wednesday morning, Tillerson told reporters “there’s never been a consideration in my mind to leave.”
Tillerson spoke of reports stemming from an NBC story out today that said he was “on the verge of resigning this past summer” and had criticized the president, calling him a “moron.”
“The places I come from, we don’t deal with that kind of petty nonsense,” said Tillerson, referencing his long career in the oil industry and newcomer-to-Washington status. Tillerson, did not, however, deny calling the president a “moron.”
Tillerson told reporters he thinks highly of the president and respects his love for country, his intelligence and insistence on results and accountability.
He also spoke of State Department accomplishments since January, noting international unity around the U.S.-led campaign to pressure North Korea, partnerships with India and Pakistan to fight terrorism and the diminishment of ISIS’s power in Iraq and Syria.
Still, Tillerson said, “there is much to be done and we’re just getting started.”
Immediately after Tillerson spoke the president tweeted that he considers the NBC story to be “fake news” and said “they should issue an apology to America.”
On Sunday, the president put out tweets that seemed to undermine Tillerson efforts with North Korea. Trump tweeted, “I told Rex Tillerson, our wonderful Secretary of State, that he is wasting his time trying to negotiate with Little Rocket Man.”
“Little Rocket Man” is the disparaging term Trump has used recently to refer to Kim Jong-un, the leader of North Korea.
